Descend

• POS: Verb (usu participle)
• HYPHEN: de=scend

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Descend, v.
1 tr. & intr. go or come down (a hill, stairs, etc.).
2 intr. (of a thing) sink, fall (rain descended heavily).
3 intr. slope downwards, lie along a descending slope (fields descended to the beach).
4 intr. (usu. foll. by on) a make a sudden attack. b make an unexpected and usu. unwelcome visit (hope they don't descend on us at the weekend).
5 intr. (usu. foll. by from, to) (of property, qualities, rights, etc.) be passed by inheritance (the house descends from my grandmother; the property descended to me).
6 intr. a sink in rank, quality, etc. b (foll. by to) degrade oneself morally to (an unworthy act) (descend to violence).
7 intr. Mus. (of sound) become lower in pitch.
8 intr. (usu. foll. by to) proceed (in discourse or writing): a in time (to a subsequent event etc.). b from the general (to the particular) (now let's descend to details).
9 tr. go along (a river etc.) to the sea etc.
10 intr. Printing (of a letter) have its tail below the line.

Idiom

be descended from have as an ancestor.

Derivative

descendent adj.

Etymology

ME f. OF descendre f. L descendere (as DE-, scandere climb)

THESAURUS

Descend

advance, alight, ascend, assault, attack, back, back up, bank, be shamed, budge, cant, careen, cascade, cataract, change, change hands, change ownership, change place, circle, climb, climb down, collapse, come down, come in, condescend, crash, crash-land, decline, degenerate, deign, derogate, descend on, devolve, dip, dip down, disimprove, disintegrate, ditch, down, downwind, drop, drop down, drop off, ebb, fall, fall away, fall down, fall into disrepute, fall off, flow, get down, get over, go, go around, go down, go downhill, go round, go sideways, go uphill, grade, gravitate, gyrate, head, incline, incur discredit, incur disesteem, incur disgrace, invade, keel, land, lead, lean, level off, light, list, lose altitude, lose caste, lose countenance, lose credit, lose face, lower, lower oneself, mount, move, move over, overshoot, pancake, parachute, pass on, pitch, plummet, plunge, point, pounce, pounce on, pounce upon, pour down, precipitate, progress, rain, rake, regress, retreat, retrograde, retrogress, rise, rot, rotate, run, settle, settle down, shelve, shift, sidle, sink, slant, slope, soar, spin, stir, stoop, stream, subside, succeed, swag, sway, swoop, swoop down on, swoop down upon, talk down, tend, tend to go, tilt, tip, touch down, travel, trend downward, uprise, upwind, vouchsafe, wane, whirl, worsen

ROGET THESAURUS

Descend

Decrease

VB decrease, diminish, lessen, abridge, shrink, drop off, fall off, tail off, fall away, waste, wear, wane, ebb, decline, descend, subside, melt away, die away, retire into the shade, hide its diminished head, fall to a low ebb, run low, languish, decay, crumble, bate, abate, dequantitate, discount, depreciate, extenuate, lower, weaken, attenuate, fritter away, mitigate, dwarf, throw into the shade, reduce, shorten, subtract.

Descent

VB descend, go down, drop down, come down, fall, gravitate, drop, slip, slide, rappel, settle, plunge, plummet, crash, decline, set, sink, droop, come down a peg, slump, dismount, alight, light, get down, swoop, stoop, fall prostrate, precipitate oneself, let fall, tumble, trip, stumble, titubate, lurch, pitch, swag, topple, topple over, tumble over, topple down, tumble down, tilt, sprawl, plump down, come down a cropper.